I'm Not That Cold
by Destux
Summary: During a cold Christmas morning, Makoto comes down with a severe cold and along the way he meets his cold girlfriend/boss. He wonders if he's able to survive the cold today...


A/N: This should have been my first fic and my submission for Christmas but my OTP must always come first! I'm two days late but ehh. This is my 100% fluff chapter ft. Naegiri. I can't believe this turned out longer than my first one, which took a whole day for me to brainstorm and half a day to write. This one took a whole day but I wrote this on the fly. I may ship these two but I am kinda pissed at my brain for not doing my OTP justice.

Without further ado, enjoy watching our hopeful egg suffer!

* * *

It was a cold morning but that wasn't the point today. Today was Christmas Day and like any other day, there's always someone who Lady Luck just hates with a passion. Seriously, can Makoto ever take a break from his bad luck? The heater in his quarters broke down again some time earlier while he was sleeping, Byakuya had to "borrow" his coffee supply because Hiro stole the entirety of his after the scion's multiple refusals to share some of his luxurious and high-quality coffee with the clairvoyant, some pack of rodents turned his favorite hoodie into Swiss cheese, and as he was going to his workplace, some car sped past a large puddle, completely drenching him and his work clothes in water and being drenched in water on a cold Christmas morning was a very bad combination. As Makoto was shivering from the harsh and unforgiving temperature, he suddenly came down with an illness. His head was starting to get light and dizzy, and he began to sneeze left and right. Snot dripped down from both of his nostrils, preventing him from breathing through his nose. Despite all this, Makoto persisted through his usual bout of misfortune and arrived at the Future Foundation. He still had some things to do. Maybe he can work and warm himself up with the heaters of the building and ask for a cup of coffee from Kyoko...

While he was going to his division's workplace, his co-workers gawked and eyed at his pitiful and horrible state. His hair, attire and body were wet and looked worse for wear. He didn't mind the strange looks the others gave him as there were no rules stating that he had to look presentable; that's just what the others would commonly do when working at the prestigious Future Foundation and he didn't look prestigious at all despite his title. It was extremely ironic really. The Ultimate Hope who was supposed to be optimistic looking hopeless and depressing during Christmas? Byakuya might've laughed at such a cruel joke. Maybe even Kyoko. Gee, how embarrassing.

Speaking of which...

 _"Oh shoot, the gift!"_ Makoto mentally shouted to himself as he forgot to get a gift for Kyoko. Not only did he look disgusting, but he was late and he forgot to get his best friend a gift! He could only ever hope to be spared from the cold disappointment his boss would give him for failing to meet her strict expectations. It wasn't fair. She already did a lot of things for Makoto, from both killing games and her cooperation for stopping the former remnants from submitting to Junko. She was always there for him. She was more dependable than him. And now, the only thing he could ever give to her is *this*. Fortunately, they had shortened work hours since today was supposed to be a special day. All he had to do was to hide from Kyoko until work ends so he can quickly run to the nearest gift shop and buy her the new mug that he saw one day when he and Hina were going to a fancy restaurant to meet up with their classmates for dinner, courtesy of Byakuya. The scion had the heart to pay for their dinner but before anyone could thank him, he cut them off. "Don't get the wrong notion. Consider this my Christmas present so you idiots won't bother me about it again just like last year. I prefer to spend my time in _silence_ no matter the occasion." He spat his usual condescending words to the rest of the group and then he slammed his thick wad of cash on the bill to drive it in their heads that he disliked spending his time for "such foolish pleasantries", as he would call it.

Makoto's reminiscing thoughts drifted back to his current situation and he noticed Toko lurking in the shadows and spying on Byakuya as always. He let out a quiet sigh of relief as the both of them wouldn't notice him with their attention focused on the other's presence and their respective works. Now, he only had Kyoko to worry about. He glanced around the place and found no signs of the detective anywhere. With this very important detail in mind, he quickly sneaked his way to a vending machine to get his cup of coffee. After gulping down his hot and steamy drink, Makoto felt a little better and more energetic. He felt like he could still salvage the situation his own luck-

"A-ACHOO!"

 _"Great. Just great. There's no way no one would've not heard-"_

"ACHOO! A-A-ACHOO! ACHOO! A-ACHOO!"

Makoto tried to suck up the snot that profusely flowed from his nostrils by sniffing loudly. At this rate, Kyoko would've already heard his sneezing streak. There was NO chance he was going to spend his work day unnoticed. Makoto grimaced and let out a pained groan as his nose and throat were getting stuffier with his snot. The hotness of his coffee did not help conceal the fluid that dripped from his nose. Since it was hot, the snot became less viscous so it was able to flow freely out of his nose. He thought about blowing his nose on his handkerchief but that would draw more attention to himself. Well, he might as well just go through with it since there's no avoiding the inevitable anyways. Makoto took out the handkerchief from his pocket and blew his nose on it, making a slimy sound that made the others cringe. The sound was loud and unnerving since it sounded like a machine dispensing some ice cream on a cone, but imagine the ice cream as some slimy fluid of unknown origin sprinkled with some boogers. That disturbing and disconcerting image was burned into the minds of the people who heard Makoto blow his nose on the cloth. He swore he heard someone retch nearby. He continued to blow until he could finally breathe with his nose again. He still felt cold and light-headed but at least he was able to breathe easily.

And just as his luck would have it, the worst was yet to come when he heard someone clear their throat loud enough for him to hear.

Makoto froze from his spot. Even with all the signs present that he would be found out eventually by the Ultimate Detective, he still didn't expect them to be that quick on the catch. He already knows who this someone was just from how they cleared their throat. Who else would clear their throat THAT loud if they could just say his name?! Readying himself, Makoto swallowed his snot hard, turned his back and saw Kyoko leaning against the wall on her side with her arms crossed and her eyebrows furrowed at him. Beads of sweat fell from his head as his worst fears were realized. How long was she standing there? Was she watching him blow his nose on his handkerchief?

"K-Kirigiri-san?! How-?"

"Mind explaining why you look like you've been through the Amazon rainforest?" interrupted Kyoko with a voice she would use when she interrogated criminals. Makoto definitely felt like a criminal if she used that tone to address him.

He only let out a sheepish laugh and rubbed the side of his chin with his finger in abject embarrassment. He racked his brain to give a brief explanation to satisfy his interrogator but his mind was drawing a blank. "Uh... haha... well, you see... I, uh..." He didn't realize that he was fumbling through his words while his mind tried to form the right words to say to her. It didn't help that he was shaking from the cold and from the tension in the air. Even when the previous killing games trained him to think quickly under pressure against his own will, he still couldn't give a clear and concise answer to Kyoko even with all the times they spent together. Why was it so hard to just say it was his luck that made him look like this?

She let out an annoyed sigh. "Let me guess. Your heater broke down, Togami extorted coffee from you, your favorite hoodie had holes on it, and a car sped by a puddle and drenched you in water, which explains why your clothes got wet and why you look sick and depressing." she said in a manner like she was stating facts even though those were just her educated guesses. "Did I miss anything?"

"That's..." his voice stopped, surprised by her amazing deduction skills even if he should've expected her to know. "...actually what happened. It's just as you said before, Kirigiri-san. My "luck" never fails to worsen my day..." he remarked with a self-deprecating and sarcastic laugh to accentuate the point that he really was unlucky while also trying to make humor from his situation to lighten up the mood in the room.

"I can't say I'm surprised, Naegi. However, it was stupid of you to come to work with a sickness. Didn't you think of how your constant sneezing would infect the others?" she scolded with her features hardening, shooting a sharp glare at the shivering Makoto who only withered under her intimidating eyes. He already felt like confessing his sins to Kyoko even though he hasn't done a single bad thing today.

"I'm s-sorry... I know I should've just called in sick for today but... I kinda wanted to, uh, make it up to you for helping me multiple times for Christmas, Kirigiri-san." he said with a saddened and shameful look on his face. He knew she was disappointed in him for acting so stupid and reckless, like how he volunteered himself to test Kyoko's theory on the brainwashing videos. She really was out of his league, wasn't she?

The detective let out another annoyed sigh and took off her dark jacket and draped it over Makoto's shoulders, making him flustered as he sputtered her name involuntarily in shock. "Wait here." she ordered to Makoto before she hastily took off and said something to Byakuya. Judging from the annoyed and infuriated expression on the scion's face, Makoto only assumed that she was ordering Byakuya to fill in for him today. He decided to listen in on their conversation.

"Why do I have to fill in for both you and that idiot Naegi?"

"Someone has to take care of him. Just do as you're told, Togami. I'll tell him to make it up to you the next time he comes."

"Oh? And how about you? Don't tell me that your relationship with that boy is more important than your work."

"If I leave him, he would be absent from work for a whole week considering what happened in his quarters. I presume you aren't happy with doing his work for a week?"

"As I have already asked, why do _I_ have to do his work? Can't you get anybody else to do it, like this pesky annoyance of a woman behind me for instance?"

"You and I are the only ones who can fill in for Naegi and my workload is heavier than yours."

"Tch. Fine. At least lessen my workload today. Even my greatness can't carry two deadweights with me given this absurd order you imposed on me without prior notice."

"Deal."

Kyoko quickly returned to Makoto then grabbed his right hand and pulled him towards the exit. He was still reeling from the shock of the many things she was doing for him and now he was being forcefully pulled by his boss. His mind was in a complete state of discord which made him twist his face, unsure about how he should feel at this moment. A part of him wants to break free from her iron grip while a part of him actually enjoys being pulled by the woman of his dreams against his will.

 _"Wait, am I secretly a masochist?!"_

After passing by a number of concerned employees and a short trek towards the corridors and hallways, they finally made it outside of their work building. She still didn't relent in pulling his arm but Makoto gave in to his fate. He was still sneezing a lot. Often times, he wasn't quick enough to redirect his sneezing away from Kyoko so he actually sneezed on the detective who didn't have her jacket on her. When he did sneeze on her unintentionally, he would apologize endlessly and try to wipe off the snot that landed on her hair and white long-sleeved blouse with his free hand.

If there's something that's more bizarre than the events that happened today, it's that she managed to keep a poker face throughout this whole ordeal. Unlike Makoto, Kyoko always had her head attached to her shoulders. It was nigh impossible for anything to faze or surprise her that much. It was almost like she was a robot made from cold steel, except that Makoto knew that she was human and that the coldness she exuded wasn't as cold as her own skin. She still had a heart. If it weren't for him, Kyoko wouldn't have shown her heart to anyone. It was because of him that she was able to be in touch with her emotions that she buried deep within the darkest recesses of her heart. Underneath that prickly exterior lies a woman that Makoto loves; a strong and dependable woman who would always anchor him back to reality.

Kyoko quickly snapped Makoto out of his daydreaming thoughts of the detective by gesturing him to lie down on her bed. He didn't want to anger her any further so he reluctantly lied down on her bed. He was lying down on her bed. _Her_ bed. Makoto's face suddenly heated up with this realization in mind. That heat on his face only intensified as Kyoko approached the shivering red-faced boy and tucked him under her blanket. He was lying down on _**her**_ bed with _**her**_ jacket on his back and _**her**_ blanket over his body. Kyoko then placed her gloved hand on his forehead, probably to check if he has a headache. She only squinted her eyes by a short margin in a harsh gaze and left the room to fetch something. She has been doing a lot of good things for the poor and unfortunate Makoto and all he gave her was a hypothetical headache and his snot.

He took this brief moment of comfortable silence and examined his surroundings. The black bed and purple blanket definitely smelled like Kyoko, which was a mild lavender scent that permeated the air. His nose couldn't describe it more in detail since it was blocked by snot again. After examining the room, Makoto deduced that he was in _**her**_ bedroom. The room looked simple and minimalistic, with a wooden work desk with a cute looking lamp on it and a black swivel chair situated at the opposite side of the room facing the desk and the white wall. The room didn't have any sort of decoration in it as it only held things that Kyoko needed in a bedroom, which was her own special decoration. At least, the room was tidy and spacious, which contrasted his own messy and small bedroom. There was one thing that caught his mind though. His eyes turned towards the bedside table and saw a medium-sized gift-wrapped box with green and red stripes as its design, topped with a red ribbon sitting on top of her laptop. This box felt out of place in a room like this, so he wondered what was in that box and who was it for. His curiosity told him to get up and examine the present but he wanted to lie down on Kyoko's comfortable bed. Besides, he didn't want to test his luck any further and if she spotted him prying on her personal belongings then he would never hear the end of it. He couldn't handle an angry Kyoko, which would mean that he had to give a straight and simple answer to her and he knew that he would fail. Horribly.

Makoto shivered as he remembered that one time when he kept Sakura's identity as a secret from Kyoko. That was when she trusted him enough to reveal her findings while he kept an important secret from her. She had every right to give Makoto a cold shoulder after spitting on her trust like that, so he made it a promise to not keep any secrets from her. He still knew that she was overreacting since he hid that secret with only good intentions but he still didn't enjoy the guilt that was looming over his head when Kyoko was giving him the stink eye and a cold shoulder every time they saw each other.

Several minutes later, Kyoko returned with a hot and damp hand towel, a cup of hot coffee and a bowl of soup on a tray. She set down the tray on her work desk and placed the hand towel on Makoto's forehead. She paused for a moment and exited the room once more to get something else before he could ask her why she was doing all of this for him. He appreciated the hospitality but this was getting too much for him. If she kept doing this, then he would only feel more guilty and ashamed of his own unreliability. He didn't want to be pampered by her even though he was sick. He really should have just called in sick for today. He could take care of himself.

With a significantly shorter delay this time, she came back with a folding chair. She wasted no time to clear the things on her bedside table so she could place the tray on top of it. She set the chair down at an angle so she could sit down beside Makoto while facing both him and the table. Kyoko then carried the bowl of soup from the tray and proceeded to spoon feed the helpless Makoto.

"Open wide." she flatly said minus the singsong tune that mothers would say when spoon feeding their child.

Makoto slowly opened his mouth and Kyoko hastily shoved the spoon inside it. He quickly closed his mouth and let the soup flow to his tongue as she pulled the spoon away from his mouth. The soup was fine, not special but not bad. It suited him: fine and ordinary. Kyoko gestured him to open his mouth again and Makoto quickly followed suit. After repeating that procedure thrice, she returned the soup on the tray and opened the drawer on her table to pull out a tissue box and placed it beside the soup, implying that he can freely take from the tissue box if he feels the need to blow his nose ( _"Wait a minute. Why does she have a tissue box hidden inside her bedside table? Ah, I'm sure she has good reasons..."_ ). They resumed their somewhat intimate session of spoon feeding soup to a sick person.

Makoto was now uncomfortable with the tension in the air and he really needed to address it right now. But first, he needs to blow his nose. After he cleared his nose, he threw the used tissue to a nearby trashcan on the other side of the bed, opposite from the bedside table.

"Kirigiri-san? Why are you doing this? I can take care of mysel-mmph!"

"You obviously cannot. You decided that it was a good idea to put work over your own well-being." she stated manner-of-factly before shoving the spoon inside Makoto's mouth once again. He flinched from the sharp tongue and swallowed the soup reluctantly. Weird, the soup tasted bitter now for some reason. "You don't have to force yourself to work or to impress me because you feel obligated to do so." she added, this time in a softer tone.

"I know. It's jus-mmf!" he was interrupted when Kyoko fed him soup abruptly. He just swallowed the soup and continued. "It's just that... I wanted to show you how grateful I am for having you, Kirigiri-san. I was even planning to hide from you until work ended so I can buy you a Christmas present since I forgot to buy one." he finished with an awkward laugh laced with some sadness following his words. He sounded like a sick puppy who was just kicked out into the cold weather outside by its owner. "I'm really sorry for disappointing you, Kirigiri-san."

The detective quickly averted her gaze to try and hide the redness that tinged her cheeks and the soft giggle that escaped her lips. She moved her head downwards and planted a quick kiss on Makoto's cheek. His cheeks turned even redder after that quick and sudden peck.

"Did you really think that I would be disappointed at you for forgetting to get me a Christmas present?" she asked-well, more like stated with a sigh at the end. "Well. Now, I am disappointed that you think that I'm some heartless woman who expects nothing less than the best. I'm not that cold, Naegi." she finished with a smirk gracing her lips.

Makoto's mood brightened after hearing that from Kyoko but he still had to make sure he was not getting delirious from his fever. "Do you... really mean that, Kirigiri-san? You're not mad at me for forgetting?" he asked with his expectant eyes.

"Depends on what you mean. I don't really mind if you forgot to get me a Christmas present but I am still mad because of your recklessness. I find it endearing but you can't just forget about your own safety." she remarked, returning to her old self as she resumed spoon feeding the sick boy. "Remember? You almost died. Twice. I really can't leave you unsupervised now, can I?"

Makoto gave an awkward laugh to her concerned statement and replied with an all-knowing smile, "You know that I'd do anything if it means that everyone will be unharmed or happy. That includes you too, Kirigiri-san."

Kyoko put the bowl down on the tray and placed her gloved hand of top of his naked one. Their eyes met each other and the image that flashed in Makoto's mind was the horrible purple discoloration of the left side of her face that marked her during the Future Foundation killing game. Even after being severely traumatized by her appearance, he was glad that Kyoko recovered from the poison that came from her cruel and heartless forbidden action and that she regained her natural skin color. Feeling that gloved hand on top of his should have comforted and reassured him, but now? It reminded him just how quickly things can change for the worst. This sense of déjà vu made him worry about unnecessary nonsense. The Tragedy was over and the world is starting to recover from it. It's not like Kyoko was suffering from some terminal illness that she hid from Makoto, right?

"Your life is precious, Naegi. Don't ever take it so lightly. Please." she firmly requested to him. "I know that you care about the others more than you care about yourself but you need to consider how the others would feel about what your actions would entail..." her firm gaze faltered and hesitated for a little while. "...Please consider how _I_ would feel."

"K-Kirigiri-san..." he said, shocked at what she just said to him. He had never seen Kyoko look this worried and vulnerable before. God, has she been worrying ever since she knew about what he did? Going through a punishment time for her sake made a crack on her iron-clad persona. Volunteering to test Kyoko's theory, careless about the consequences that would follow, was something he knew that she would strongly not condone yet he went through with it anyway. Not to mention, the brainwashing video targeted the grief and turmoil that he felt from his dead classmates and from seeing Kyoko's "corpse". That only proved her worries that he subconsciously considered doing... "that" if she had died for real and that he would gladly give his life just so she can live. There was no way she wasn't worried about his tendency to act with selfless abandon.

"I have said this multiple times already. Your hope is infectious. Even after finding out the despairing truth during the first killing game, you still held on to hope. Even after knowing what the remnants of despair and Enoshima all did, you still believed in the hope that they could change for the better. You gave me hope; you gave Kamukura hope, and that hope inspired us to do great things and it changed the way we viewed our situation. That is the reason why I can't let you die nor suffer. You're too important to let go..." her voice softened once more but the hand that was on top of his did the opposite and clutched it as if she was holding onto it for dear life. "...You're too important for _me_ to let go, Naegi. You can't keep risking your life even if it means that more people will be saved or... even if it means that _I'll_ be happy because I won't!"

Kyoko's mask was starting to shatter from the emotions that were running wild within her. Even so, with her years of training, she still managed to hold that straight face. "If you do truly care about me and the others..." the detective closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. Makoto noticed that the hand that was holding his own was slightly trembling. Was she forcing herself to calm down?

After the trembling stopped, Kyoko opened her eyes and shot a piercing glare at the other. "...then don't you _**dare**_ make me worry _**again**_." she firmly ordered, adding emphasis and emotion to her last statement.

"I-I see..." he said in a thoughtful and quiet tone, getting the memo. "...I won't make you worry again, Kirigiri-san. I promise." he finished with his own determined expression despite his sickly state. He used this expression when he told his classmates and the former remnants to not give in to Junko's despair and when he confronted Kyosuke to prove to him that he won't give in to the despair of Kyoko's "death". If it means that Kyoko or the others won't fall to despair, then he'll _live_ for them.

She let out a relieved sigh and resumed to spoon feeding Makoto in silence. She quickly masked her vulnerable side that reared its ugly head for a moment by assuming her stoic face once more. His sneezing became less frequent and he was able to breathe a bit easier this time. He was still feverish and he still needed to inhale deeply through his nose if he wished to breathe through that.

After he finished his soup, Kyoko asked, "Do you feel better now?" He nodded quickly to give affirmation to her question. She placed the empty bowl on the tray and grabbed the warm cup of coffee that she prepared before. It turns out, that coffee was for her and not for him since he already had his. She stood from her seat and grabbed something from the other side of the room. He wondered what that something was. He had a sneaking suspicion about what that was but it would be better if he just saw it instead with his own two eyes. When Kyoko returned to her original position and placed the object on her lap, his suspicions were confirmed.

Their eyes met each other once again, with Makoto gawking at the detective's purple orbs and lavender hair flowing freely from her head with his weak eyes in admiration and blushing cheeks, while the other simply staring into his hazel ones while sipping from her cup of coffee. He had no method of finding out the thought process of the enigmatic Kyoko. He was no psychic nor had good intuition, unlike Sayaka who somehow knew what he was thinking at random times. That scared him even though they were already good friends prior to their time at Hope's Peak. If he had to make a "lucky" guess, he thinks Kyoko might be expecting him to ask about the box on her lap.

Never hurts to ask, right?

"Um, Kirigiri-san?" he addressed the detective with caution for no logical reason whatsoever. She hitched her eyebrow, silently acknowledging his request for questioning. "Who are you giving that Christmas present to?" he asked, finally taking the bait that she casted.

"Who do you think am I gifting, Naegi?" she returned with a question of her own. He was SO getting baited hard.

"Uhhh, is it for Togami-kun?"

"It's fine to be presumptuous." she said with a smile on her lips that tells him he was wrong in his guess. It was as if she knew that he was scared of assuming that the present was for him.

"I mean, it can't be me, can it?" he awkwardly remarked with a laugh. "You've already done so much for me, Kirigiri-san."

"I see..." she flatly said in disappointment. "It appears that you don't want my gift after all."

"Wait, was that really for me?!" he quickly shouted in excitement and utter disbelief.

"Consider yourself lucky, Naegi. If it weren't for your bad luck, I wouldn't have been treating you as an added bonus to this gift." she said with a laugh running out of her lips while she used her free hand to try to stifle that laughter. "You're making this too easy..." He knows that she enjoys playing him around like a fiddle so he just lets her do what she wants. It's not as if she was abusing that power anyways...

She takes one last swig of her coffee before setting it down beside the empty bowl of soup. She began to undo the gift-wrapped box in a careful and calculated manner. She cleanly removed the ribbon and wrapper to reveal a dull green hoodie that was almost designed the same way as his old hoodie that was destroyed by rodents in his quarters. She gave the hoodie to Makoto and he quickly snatched it from her hands and hugged it tightly. Before Kyoko could say anything, she was interrupted by her happy patient.

"Thank you so much, Kirigiri-san! I love it!" he shouted as he sniffled a bit to breathe and to stop the tears of joy that fell from his eyes. "But..." he ceased his celebrating for a moment. "...how did you know that I needed a hoodie?"

She covered her mouth and let out a quiet giggle, smiling at the heart-warming sight of her patient's puppy-like eyes and expression. "I had no knowledge of that at the time. I simply bought this to expand your wardrobe choices." she stated while she was still smiling at Makoto.

The happy puppy was still hugging the hoodie but his happy expression quickly fell. "...I still don't have anything to give you for Christmas though." he sadly remarked, regretting having enjoyed the gift with nothing to give to Kyoko.

"You're still concerned about that?"

"I really wanted to give you something, Kirigiri-san. I guess I have to enjoy this gift empty-handed, huh?"

Makoto turned to look at the detective who was pondering, her thumb and index finger wrapping her chin deep in thought. He, too, pondered about what she could be thinking about this time.

"There is something that I want from you..." she mindlessly mumbled, still deep in thought.

"There is? But-!"

"Not to worry. I simply wish for you to spend Christmas here with me." she angled her eyes towards him, a pink blush coloring her pale cheeks. "That's all."

"H-huh?! Y-you want m-me to stay here w-w-with you?" he stuttered as his mind was put in disarray at Kyoko's sudden request. His eyes were bulging from the shock and he knows that if he tried to speak, it would come out in stutters and sputters like how Toko would normally talk. There were just so many things that were wrong with this that he had to address it. "W-where would y-you even s-sleep tonight?!"

"Obviously, I have to sleep beside you. I don't plan on sleeping on the couch." she flatly stated but the pink in her cheeks mismatched her tone.

Makoto's cheeks became so hot that he had to free himself from the blanket to escape the hot and intimate atmosphere. His heart and breathing raced as he pictured the thought of Kyoko sleeping beside him on _**her**_ bed in his brain. He liked Kyoko but this was too much for him to handle!

"K-Kirigiri-san! This is too s-sudden! I'll just sleep on the couch! I don't want you to get sick because of me a-and we might not even fit in y-y-your b-bed!" he shouted desperately. He was panicking and he racked his brain into overdrive to try to think of an excuse to escape the awkwardness that would ensue if he slept on the same bed as her.

"I would prefer that you don't sleep on the couch." she coldly stated with a sharp glare. Her tone was laced with a dash of irritation. "I'll be **fine** sleeping beside you."

He stared in utter disbelief. Makoto desperately wanted to believe that Kyoko was joking but her angry expression and cold tone clearly stated that she WANTED him for Christmas. His head throbbed but he still tried to think of an excuse. Anything. He'd die of embarrassment if she slept beside him. But...

Makoto let out a sigh and resigned himself to his fate. He did say that he wanted to give her something so he'll give it even if it means that she wants to sleep beside him. "Ok ok ok. Just let me call Komaru to fetch me some clothes so I can change out of my suit..." he remarked with a more tired expression than his current state. "Would it be fine for me to take a quick bath in your bathroom, K-Kirigiri-san?"

"Why wouldn't it be? I permitted you to spend the day here, did I not?" she questioned with an eyebrow raised. "Although, you'll have to ask your little sister to include your other bathroom amenities to the things she has to bring if you plan to take a quick bath here."

"Ah, r-right. Of course. Thanks for reminding me..." he awkwardly said, giving himself a mental facepalm. He can't believe he forgot that Kyoko was still a woman and her bathroom amenities weren't exactly unisex. He reached for his phone in his pocket that was surprisingly dry considering how wet he was when he went to work and dialed Komaru's number.

She decided to live in with Makoto for a month as her Christmas break from helping out on the rehabilitation of the residents in Towa City, or so she calls it. In truth, she was just tired from dealing with a bunch of little kids who killed their parents since they were brainwashed by Monaca into thinking that adults were demons that needed to be killed in order to build a kids-only paradise. Needless to say, it was a self-imposed break that she needed anyways. They both missed each other and were happy to finally meet again in person after being separated for so long. Their parents were still missing and right now, they only had each other for family. "That's strange. She should be awake by n-"

"Heya Makoto! What's up? How's work?"

"Hey Komaru. Oh, you know... the usual."

"Yeah, I kinda figured after finding out the heater broke down for the third time this week. Also, what in the world happened to your hoodie?! Did a bunch of rats munch on it cuz you're such a sweet person?"

"I think? Didn't you disinfect the rooms though?"

"Yeah, I did. So, it must be cuz of your sweetness that made them immune!"

"Haha. Very funny, Komaru."

"Oh come on! Let me have my fun. Soooo, why did ya call?"

"Oh right! Uhhh... Listen, can you bring me some spare clothes and my stuff in the bathroom? I'll be at Kirigiri-san's the whole day. I'll be back tomorrow."

"WHAAAT?! YOU'RE DITCHING ME FOR KIRIGIRI-SAN?! WHAT HAPPENED TO FAMILY FIRST, MAKOTO?!"

"It's... a long story. I'll explain it when you get here with my stuff."

"Ummm, Makoto?"

"Yeah, Komaru?"

"You don't sound okay. Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine. No need to worry."

"No, you aren't! You usually sound more positive than this! Especially with you sleeping in with Kirigiri-san..."

"...Today's been kinda... hectic and I'm a bit tired. I promise I'll explain it to you once you get here."

"If you say so..."

"Hey, Komaru?"

"Yeah?"

"Merry Christmas."

"*sniffle* T-thanks, Makoto. M-Merry Christmas to you too. *sniffle* *sniffle*"

"Hey, are you crying over there?"

"Y-yeah, I am. *sniffle* Don't worry, I'll be there in three minutes. Tell Kirigiri-san I said hi!"

"Got it. Bye Komaru."

"Bye Makoto!"

After Komaru hang up the call, Makoto let out a sigh and stared into the ceiling. She was right. He really didn't sound okay today. Great. He made his little sister worry about him on Christmas. At least, he succeeded in cheering her up by greeting her today, even though he made her cry by doing so. She really did miss him, huh?

*ahem*

Oh, right. Kyoko was still there with him. Makoto turned his head towards the detective who was sitting on the chair with her arms crossed and her usual expression. ( _"Did I make her mad again?"_ )

"Sorry for ignoring you, Kirigiri-san. Oh! Komaru says hi by the way."

She softened her features and let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. "You shouldn't be apologizing, Naegi. I should be the one apologizing for forcing this on you." she said with a dejected expression. "It's quite clear that you're not... enthused with my sudden request. It's not too late to back out. I promise I won't hold it against you if you decline. I should have just brought you to the clinic instead of giving in to my selfish desires..."

"No, it's fine really! I just feel a bit more tired than I was before." he quickly reassured her. He wants to make sure that Kyoko enjoys her Christmas Day. It was the least he could do for her right now. "Just let me sleep for a bit and I'll be fine. Please call me when Komaru arrives."

She smiled at him and smooched the boy's cheek which caused him to blush deeply again. "I will. Merry Christmas, Makoto."

Still blushing, he returned her smile with a smile of his own. "Merry Christmas, Kyoko."

Their faces were both as red as the discarded gift wrapper after that exchange. She did look beautiful when she's flustered, didn't she?

Makoto really was glad for having Kyoko.

* * *

A/N: Aaaaaand that's it! Thanks for reading! Please feel free to leave your feedback. I'll try to respond to it as long as I have time.

P.S. I'm not really sure if I should add the hidden "u" in their names like Kyouko, Touko, or Ouma. I really don't know if I should since I'm already adding the surname with the occasional honorific when they talk to each other.


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